Blackvue DR970X-2CH + LTE Review - 2 New 4K Cloud Dash Cams 

Thank you for the comment.

I believe your camera has to be hardwired incorrectly if it's not automatically switching to parking mode. It only switches to parking mode with accelerometer if it has constant power. All of my blackvue cameras the last few years hardwired immediately switched to parking lot as soon as my ignition turns off. My assumption is your wire that's supposed to be connected to an ACC fuse is connected to and always on fuse.

I agree... and that Blackvue was "by default" sharing the location of dashcam users, and streaming user video publicly ... until they corrected the default setting to be off. There was no excuse for this by Blackvue.

If you really want the cloud features blackvue is the way to go. The Viofo A139 Pro 2CH is a better option for video quality but offers no cloud features. The infrared version is to record inside your vehicle, popular with Uber drivers. So you would not have a camera looking out your back window. The infrared would just reflect off the glass and wouldn't help see out the back, especially with dark tint which will block more IR. If you check my blackvue playlist I have reviewed a few IR versions or a couple three channel cameras that have a third interior infrared camera and you will see that the infrared doesn't even go that far. It's just enough to brighten up your back seat.

@integralcamerasolutions Alright. I've been busy but thank you for the speedy reply. I am however now wondering about the connectivity issues I'm hearing so much about. Should I go with a 970X LTE or a regular 900X Plus? If the cloud capabilities are as bad as I'm hearing as far as Live View, Cloud Subscriptions, Activation Fees for SIM cards, I may decide to go with something else or wait for the new Sony starvis 2 sensor ones that were just announced at SEMA. Let me know your thoughts because right now I have conflicting data and thoughts.

The cloud feature on Blackvue is useless. Haven't been able to connect to cloud in weeks.

@@birnsbirns What type of troubleshooting have you tried so far? The only times I have issues is when I am in rural areas with poor cellular service.

Watching for this reply! please

@@jaygolden4218 - Do not purchase these obsolete units! They fall way short of STARVIS 2 Image quality (Vantrue N4/N5, VIOFO A139 Pro, Thinkware U3000 etc…)! However, the NEW updated Blackvue “PLUS” series (DR 970X 2-Ch PLUS, DR 970X 1-CH PLUS & DR 970X LTE PLUS) should offer equivalent image quality with more optional features! The PLUS models debuted this month and feature STARVIS 2 chipsets, new lenses, HEVC (H.265) compression coding, high bitrate recording! These three units (the DR 970X BOX PLUS will be added to the lineup soon) represent the direction that Blackvue is going in and all their existing models have basically become obsolete! 🥂

I would say it's one of the best. Thinkware has very good parking mode with some features like prioritizing what file types to save space for, and their top of the line U3000 model even can use radar to detect motion instead of the camera, to save battery. But blackvue is definitely the king of the cloud. Viofo is a great more affordable alternative with buffered parking mode in many of their cameras but they have been inconsistent in which ones are buffered (meaning it captures the 5-10 seconds before the motion or impact too) where blackvues parking mode is consistent across their entire lineup (other than the budget line not having cloud function)

Hey, my tmobile plan is just a regular data plan. I went to a tmobile store and said I wanted a data plan with no talk or text. I think it's like what you'd get for a tablet.

@@integralcamerasolutions how much is the plan ?

I pay $10 a month for my T-Mobile plan. It is shown in the video.

@@integralcamerasolutions thank you . I bought Magnta tmobile plan for $20 unlimited . Now I want to buy 256gb sd card but I don't know which one is compatible .

@@JOHNC212 check the videos description, I link what I think is the current best card. It's the same 256gb card I use in all my dash cams now.

Between last year's model and this new 970 series it's so hard to say but I decided to upgrade to the 970. I can only recommend people watch multiple reviews to decide because the results have been so varied.

That footage was from February actually. I took the cameras down in the spring, waiting for new firmware but it never came so I used the footage I took in my original testing.

There is no side surveillance with any blackvue cameras unless you buy two of them. If you look at some of my oldest videos I actually did this and basically had front rear and both sides covered, but the power demand was too much for a typical car battery. Thinkware offers a camera system that allows four channels like that in one but the video quality across the extra channels is poor compared to typical one or two channel cameras. Unless you have the car like a Tesla with built-in cameras, aftermarket dash camera technology just isn't that great if you want to cover all four sides yet.

@@integralcamerasolutions Thanks! I have F150 lightning and there are 360 cameras but only when you park your car or when youre driving. They haven't unlocked them for "sentry" mode or anything like that. I was side swipped in my parking lot last weekend and I haVe no video evidence. So now I want surveillance incase that happens again. Thinkware is an add on through ford but the reviews are so so at best. Have you checked out wolf box?

It is very expensive, but at the same time there isn't anything else on the market that has all of the same features in one. Ring car cam has cloud features, but it is far inferior in almost every single way unfortunately. So there's not really any other comparable dash cam that has all of these features you could base a price comparison on.

All cameras have some compression there's no magic dash camera that can get uncompressed views of license plates. There's always going to be a limit to how far you can read a license plate or how dark it can be to see it with every camera. 4k cameras from Blackvue, Viofo, Thinkware, Vantrue, and several others are going to be the best video quality you will get to read license plates. You can only get so much quality out of a camera average people can buy while also needing to handle extreme temperatures in a cars dashboard, and also recording while moving at high speed, and being small. GoPros can't compete either.

@@integralcamerasolutions That's fair but my smartphone can do it. It can also focus on a specific point. My problem is that license plates are the most important detail to be able to read. To me, anyway. They should have software onboard that focusses on those before any compression and adjusts the curves (levels, light, exposure, etc.) to make license plates readable. With some smart software it would only have to do that once per car it comes across while it remains in-view. Detect a car -> find its license plate -> store it to that car until car leaves the scene. Then do it again if the car enters the scene again. It would require more processing power, but it would allow them to use software overlays (and database record keeping) of all the cars you ran into, when, and where, at what speeds, etc.

@@mahadevovnl Do you use your smart phone as a dash cam? I have tried, they overheat and shut off during the hot summer days. They can't handle the stress dash cams must be able to handle. My iphone couldn't last 15 minutes. And now with 4k its even harder, even a GoPro can't handle the heat. Especially now with 4K which everything on the market runs very hot, if you search gopro or dji action overheating tests, you'll see even at room temperature they struggled to record 4k30 up until a year or so ago without overheating, let alone on the hot dashboard of a car on a summer day. I am sure many expensive cameras 4x-10x the price of the best dash cams can record better plates, but at what cost? Now you are suggesting adding much more computational features that would add even more heat. its just not possible right now in a small compact, easy to install dash cam that would be affordable for anyone. Most people I find won't even pay $200 for a dash cam. What you're talking about is just impossible today without it being out of 99% of peoples price range.

@@integralcamerasolutions My iPhone does well indefinitely, but I use the airco vents to cool it anyway; I stick the iPhone directly to that vent. And it's powered. But you make a good point. Perhaps dashcams with a good resolution and low compression and a software focus on license plates would simply require active cooling. Like a tiny fan :)